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Ammon Bundy Fails Background Check To Get A Gun. Then It Gets Complicated

Ammon Bundy kept his Facebook followers informed as he tried to purchase a weapon from D&B Supply in Emmett, Idaho.
Ammon Bundy kept his Facebook followers informed as he tried to purchase a weapon from D&B Supply in Emmett, Idaho.

Ammon Bundy, who led an armed standoff with the federal government in an Oregon wildlife refuge, took to Facebook this past weekend. He said he failed a background check to buy a firearm -- and then things took a turn.  

Click 'play' to listen to the audio version of this story.

Bundy was acquitted of federal charges over standoffs with the federal government at a family ranch in Nevada and the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. It’s unclear why he failed the background check. A few days later, Bundy told his Facebook followers he got a call from D&B Supply in Emmett, Idaho, where he tried to buy the gun. The manager said the FBI had reversed its decision on the background check.

“He was informing me that we could go ahead and purchase the gun,” Bundy said.

But the story doesn’t end there. Again, according to Bundy’s Facebook page, he said he went back to the store to get the gun. There, he was told he’d need to sign a final form, “saying that I agreed to [the background check], saying that I agreed to the process, and haven’t committed any crime or anything since the last time I was in,” he said. 

Instead of signing his name, he wrote “in protest” because he said he didn’t agree with process.

Ultimately, Bundy left the store without buying a gun. 

Scott Curley, a spokesperson for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said the form Bundy was talking about was likely an ATF form 4473, which is pretty standard. You can’t get a firearm from a licensed dealer without signing it.

“It’s important to remember that all the information on the ATF 4473 is a federal document. And if you falsely provide information on that document, it could subject the individual to felony charges,” Curley said.

He said he couldn’t specifically talk about the issues with Bundy’s background checks, but said some people are on the FBI’s “delayed denial” list, where they can’t pass a background check for a few days until federal officials give the OK. 

The FBI had no comment for the story.

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUER in Salt Lake City, KUNR in Nevada, and KRCC and KUNC in Colorado.Find reporter Madelyn Beck on Twitter @MadelynBeck8

Copyright 2019 Boise State Public Radio

Copyright 2021 Boise State Public Radio News. To see more, visit Boise State Public Radio News.

Madelyn Beck
Madelyn Beck is Boise State Public Radio's regional reporter with the Mountain West News Bureau. She's from Montana but has reported everywhere from North Dakota to Alaska to Washington, D.C. Her last few positions included covering energy resources in Wyoming and reporting on agriculture/rural life issues in Illinois.
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